Why do so many business owners and independent professionals have cluttered offices?
Today’s professionals feel overwhelmed with the volume of paper and electronic information that arrive at a frenetic pace daily.
Here’s the most common response I’ve observed to this deluge of paper and information …”I’ll just set it here for now!” … and a pile is born!
Perhaps you don’t know where to put something or you’re afraid if you put it away you won’t remember where to find it when you need it. If it requires action, you may fear forgetting to follow up…out of sight, out of mind! Unfortunately, sticking it in a pile will not help you remember to take action when the time comes to do that important follow-up.
Having a good finding and reminding system is key!
Sorting and filing seems like a lower priority than creating a new product or serving your clients. But what kind of message do you send others when they see that mess? Prospective clients may ask themselves, “If she can’t manage her own office, how will she manage my project?”
According to the results of a 2010 study by office products company Brother International, the annual cost of time spent looking for misplaced items in corporate America is $177 billion. That represents an average of 76 hours a year of wasted time–nearly two work weeks a year. According to the same study, disorganization not only represents costs in wasted time, but it also costs individual workers money, since nearly one-third of those surveyed failed to get reimbursed by their employer for a business-related out-of-pocket-expense because they misplaced or lost receipts.
Click here to find out what clutter is costing you personally or professionally.
What’s at the Root of the Problem?
Getting and staying organized is not easy, especially at the pace we move these days. If it was easy, there wouldn’t be so many highly successful, intelligent, creative people who struggle with it. Unfortunately, unless you were born organized or had a good role model that taught you these skills, you may never have learned even the most basic organizing skills.
Getting organized is not just about managing your physical space. It also involves organizing your thoughts and your time.
Recently I conducted a coaching call with a highly intelligent and educated client who holds multiple degrees. She was embarrassed to confide in me that she had never learned how to manage her time. Until I taught her a simple planning process, she had never used a calendar to schedule anything other than appointments with others. Learning how to organize her thoughts and time around her priorities has been life-changing!
The Solution
I love the acronym for the word SYSTEM: Saving You Space, Time, Energy & Money.
Having the right systems and processes in place will make a big difference, but only if you form new habits around using them.
Imagine knowing what to do with every single piece of paper or information that comes into your busy life, so you no longer feel a need to create piles of delayed decisions. Imagine remembering important follow-up at the right time.
Since 2003, I’ve taught a free webinar, Buried in Paper, to thousands of professionals who want to stop the paper pile-up, once and for all, so they can find what they need when they need it, and remember important follow-up.
Click here to see what bestselling author Jack Canfield has to say about the system I helped him set up.
Are you ready to put a SYSTEM in place and form new habits that will help you enjoy a more purpose-driven and productive life?
No matter what you’d like to change or achieve, the secrets to success are the same…
…Get clear. As specifically as possible, decide what you want. The clearer you are about what you want to do, be and have in your life, the more likely you are to achieve it.
…Get perspective. Most people don’t tell anyone what they want or what they are struggling with, and because of that they don’t reap the benefit of receiving valuable outside perspective.
…Get support. Very few people (if any) achieve anything great alone. Sports stars and Olympic athletes have performance coaches. Famous singers and actors have voice and acting coaches. Business professionals have business coaches.
If you want to speed up your success rate, let’s schedule a no-cost discovery call. I’ll help you get clear, get perspective, and get support.
Leave a comment below, I’d love to hear what causes clutter in your life!
When Life Throws Dirt on You, Shake if Off! >>
